breach
breach — noun
1. a failure to keep a rule, a promise, or a duty, or an act that damages trust or
a failure to keep a rule, a promise, or a duty, or an act that damages trust or loyalty between people
Missing two safety checks was a serious breach of company rules.
breach of + rules
The leaked emails were seen as a painful breach of trust.
Late payment counts as a breach of the rental agreement.
The secret meeting was viewed as a breach of loyalty.
collocation: breach of trust/loyalty
- serious breach
- breach of trust
- breach of contract
- breach of duty
- breach of company rules
- compliance
means acting in the way a rule or agreement requires
- loyalty
focuses on keeping trust rather than damaging it
Grammar Patterns
breach of + contract/rules/trust/duty
Usage Note
Common after of, especially with trust, duty, contract, promise, and rules. Distinguish from sense 3: this sense names the broken act itself, while sense 3 usually appears after be in breach of and focuses on the ongoing condition.
Common Mistakes
2. shouting, fighting, or similar trouble somewhere open to everyone that disturbs
shouting, fighting, or similar trouble somewhere open to everyone that disturbs people nearby
Police arrested two fans for breach of the peace after the match.
legal phrase: breach of the peace
The judge fined Omar for a breach of the peace outside town hall.
Shouting at strangers in the square can become a breach of the peace.
Officers warned the crowd that more pushing could mean breach of the peace.
police warning context
- breach of the peace
- arrest for breach of the peace
- charge somebody with breach of the peace
- breach of the peace outside a bar
- disturbance
broader and less legal, covering any noisy trouble
- disorder
formal word for a lack of public order
- riot
much stronger and suggests a large violent crowd
Grammar Patterns
breach of the peace
Usage Note
Usually found in the fixed legal phrase breach of the peace in police and court language.
Common Mistakes
3. the condition of not meeting a rule, contract, or official limit
the condition of not meeting a rule, contract, or official limit
The factory was in breach of safety rules after the alarm test failed.
phrase: in breach of + rules
By Friday, the landlord was in breach of the lease.
The club remained in breach of fire limits for three weeks.
be/remain in breach of
Team Blue was in breach of the time rule again.
- in breach of the rules
- in breach of the lease
- remain in breach
- technical breach of limits
- non-compliance
formal and often used for rules or official standards
- violation
names the broken rule itself more than the ongoing condition
- default
often used when a person or company has not met a contractual duty
- compliance
means meeting the rule or condition
- observance
formal word for following a rule carefully
Grammar Patterns
be in breach of + rule/contract/limit
Usage Note
Almost always follows be and is usually followed by of. Distinguish from sense 1: sense 3 describes the state of not meeting a rule or contract, not the single act that caused it.
Common Mistakes
4. a place where a wall, gate, sea defence, or similar barrier is broken open, leav
a place where a wall, gate, sea defence, or similar barrier is broken open, leaving a gap
By noon, the cannon fire had opened a breach in the wall.
breach in + wall
Storm waves cut a breach through the sea wall overnight.
Soldiers rushed toward the breach before the gate fell.
Engineers filled the breach with sandbags before high tide.
collocation: fill the breach
- breach in the wall
- open a breach
- fill the breach
- rush through the breach
Grammar Patterns
breach in + wall/defence
Usage Note
Often used in military writing and with in after the noun, as in a breach in the wall.
Common Mistakes
step into the breach
idiomTo take over someone's duties when they cannot do them.
When the manager fell ill, Maya stepped into the breach.
Could you step into the breach while I am away?
breach — verb
1. to go against a rule or law, or to not keep an agreement, a promise, or a duty
to go against a rule or law, or to not keep an agreement, a promise, or a duty
The company breached its promise to repair every damaged roof.
breach + promise/rule/agreement
Aiko breached school rules by posting the exam online.
The bank was fined after it breached customer privacy laws.
formal legal use
Walking out early would breach our agreement with the coach.
- breach a contract
- breach school rules
- breach privacy laws
- breach a promise
Grammar Patterns
breach a law
breach a rule
breach a contract
breach a promise
Usage Note
Formal and usually takes the law, rule, promise, or contract directly as its object. In everyday speech, break is often used instead of breach.
Common Mistakes
2. to force a hole through a wall, gate, fence, or defence so that something can ge
to force a hole through a wall, gate, fence, or defence so that something can get past it
The army breached the outer wall before sunrise.
breach + wall/gate/defence
Rescue crews breached the locked door to reach the child.
Heavy waves breached the old sea fence during the storm.
non-human subject: waves
The tank breached the gate in less than a minute.
- breach the wall
- breach the gate
- breach the door
- breach the defences
- break through
the everyday multi-word choice for getting through a barrier
- pierce
suggests making a narrow hole through something
- smash
focuses on violent force rather than the gap created
Grammar Patterns
breach a wall
breach a gate
breach a door
breach defences
Usage Note
Usually takes a physical barrier directly as its object, such as wall, gate, door, or defences. Common in military writing, but it can also be used for rescue work or storm damage.
Common Mistakes
Synonym discussion
Sense: verb/1
For verb sense 1, breach is a formal word for not doing what a law, contract, promise, or duty requires. Violate is close in meaning, but it is especially common with laws, rights, and official rules. Break is the everyday choice in speech and general writing, so people often say break a rule rather than breach a rule. Betray fits only when trust or loyalty is broken, not when a technical rule is ignored. A bank may breach privacy law, a student may break school rules, and a friend may betray your trust. That difference helps you choose the right word quickly.
Common collocations
Etymology
Breach is an old English word from the same family as break. It first referred to the act of breaking and to the gap left behind, especially in a wall or defence. From that physical idea, English later extended the word to broken promises, laws, trust, and contracts. The verb grew out of the noun and kept both the legal meaning of violating something and the older idea of forcing a hole through a barrier.